Fifty Shades of Plum
by rangergirl1234
Summary: Steph catches Lula and Connie reading the latest best seller. Can Ranger convince Stephanie to embark on her own journey to Fifty Shades of Plum?
1. Chapter 1

So I got this story idea after all of the Shades of Gray hype. I got to thinking about what if Ranger caught Steph or the girls reading the book. And this is the result. Not sure if I'll continue or not, but be sure to let me know what you think and we'll go from there. It could easily stand as a one shot as well.  
The characters are not mine, I'm just taking them along for a spin. Thanks!

My alarm is blaring as I wake up and roll over to smack it a couple of times, eventually silencing the morning beast. And so starts another day in the ordinary life of me, Stephanie Plum. Well, ordinary for me at least. I'm a thirty something year old bounty hunter, mom to an aging hamster, daughter and granddaughter to an Italian/Hungarian family, and occasional lover to Ranger Manoso. Yum!

You see, I dated Morelli, the Italian heartthrob off and on for many years until one day we were finally honest with ourselves and each other. This bout of honesty also happed after he hopped a plane to Hawaii and found me playing "Mrs." to Ranger. I'm sure he assumes Ranger and I were together physically, and since that's technically the truth, I think that topic was best left untouched. Somehow during our breakup we were able to side-step that issue and have an adult conversation. Over a Pino's pizza one night we decided to salvage the friendship that remained and move on. We still get together occasionally for pizza or to watch a game, and to be honest, I'm probably closer to him now that I was when I was dating him. He's currently dating one of the dispatchers at the police department. I've met her and she seems perfect for Joe.

I know you're probably asking 'how can she be a sometime lover to someone'? Well, truth is, with Ranger you take what you can get. Although _someday_ I see us definitely being _more_, I'm not sure exactly what more entails. Our time together, both inside and outside of the bedroom, is always spectacular. But we seem to walk a fine line, both giving each other exactly what we need and never anything more. I feel like he's holding back on me, and I, in turn, hold back on him- never fully giving my heart to him for fear that he might turn me away or not reciprocate. So for the past few months we've been falling in and out of each others' beds and days when it's convenient. There's no expectations on either side- or at least I don't think there is. Geez, who knows.

I realize that examining my current state of life isn't getting the bills paid, so I groan and roll out of bed. After a quick shower, I jump into jeans and a t-shirt and apply Mr. Alexander's miracle to my hair after wondering why I bother since it's going up into a pony tail anyway. After dropping a few grapes and carrots into Rex's cage, I'm out the door and in a mad rush to the Tasty Pastry.

I swing through and get a dozen to go and an extra large coffee since my inner diva tells me it's just gonna be that kind of a day. Ten minutes later and I'm at the Bonds office delivering morning breakfast to Lula and Connie. I mean, technically it's a good deed, right? And I really _shouldn't_ eat all 12 donuts.

"Hey girls, what's new?" I ask, as I park myself on the naughyde sofa and settle in for my daily dose of caffeine and sugar. I begin to inhale a Boston Crème donut while another is carefully balanced on my knee. Who says I don't have any talents?

I look up to see Connie and Lula reaching for donuts from the box I brought in while seriously engrossed in a book. Connie is seated at her desk, while half of Lula's voluptuous behind is parked on the edge of said desk and her cleavage is spilling out of yet another too tight tank top. Lula leans over Connie and they both can't seem to take their eyes off of whatever it is that they are reading. Both of them give me a noncommittal groan of acknowledgement, and continue reading.

"Hellloooo? Don't I get a good morning? Even after bringing breakfast? I have you know those donuts cost me almost ten bucks, and it wasn't even my turn to buy, so the least you can do is say hey and thanks!"

Connie and Lula are still reading, and don't seem to realize I'm even here. The bell above the door rings and I look up to see Ranger walk in. Connie and Lula still don't look up from their book, so whatever they are reading must be really good.

"Hey Babe. " This from Ranger, the man of many words.

"Ranger. How's it going? How'd the pickup in Atlantic City go this weekend?"

"We got 'em. Simple takedown. We got back late last night. You coming by the office today?"

"Don't I always?" I smiled, and gave Ranger what I hoped was a sexy look. Not that this was any different than my normal routine. Ever since the Morelli split, I'd decided that FTA work was nice, but I needed something regular and dependable as well. I think secretly Ranger thought I would eventually quit, but the benefits were nice, and the fact that my bank balance hadn't seen negative digits in over three months was an added bonus. I usually worked my FTA work around my 9-5 hours at Rangeman and on weekends. This way, I could be more selective about the cases I took on, and Rangeman still was contracted to take on the higher bonds or those that I felt uncomfortable taking.

Ranger placed a hand to my neck, and gently ran his fingertips along my neck and down to my collar bone, making me smile. "What's up with those two, Babe? They seem…different."

I nodded. "Yep, not sure what's the deal with them. They haven't said a word since I came in. Whatever is in that book must be Oscar worthy."

Ranger stood up from the sofa and went to stand behind Connie's chair, which meant that in essence he was reading over both Connie and Lula. A faint smile played on the outer corners of his lips as he skimmed the pages. He leaned forward, placing his chin just above Connie's shoulder and in a loud voice spoke. "Ladies, interesting reading material you have there!"

Now I've seen comedy shows that made me laugh 'til I hurt. And the night that Cal passed out when Valerie was in labor was pretty spectacular too. But nothing, and I do mean nothing, could ever beat what happened next. Lula and Connie were so startled that they both screamed-loudly! The voluptuous half of Lula's behind that was perched on the desk wasn't quite enough to keep her grounded, and the result was her falling off the desk and onto the floor while taking the phone and several files with her. Connie had a lemon filled donut in her hand and must have squeezed it when Ranger startled her, since she was now covered from chin to lap in lemon custard. And to top it all off, the interesting reading material was tossed during the episode and was now lying in front of me. I bent to pick up the book as I shook with laughter. After I finally got my breath, I stood, taking the book with me and applauded Ranger. "That's got to be one of the funniest things I've ever seen in my life, Ranger. What was so interesting that they didn't realize we were here?"

Ranger chuckled while pointing to the book. "See for yourself, Babe. Connie, is Vinnie in?"

Connie was still shaken but nodded her head as best she could. Truth is that she's still a little scared of Ranger I think, and she wouldn't dare say anything to him about the incident. She helped Lula up while Lula mumbled something about red rooms and ties.

I laughed a little, and looked at Connie and Lula. "So you two think you're gonna be ok now? What's got you so distracted this morning?"

"White girl, it's this book I tell ya. This book! Connie's sister in law told her about it, and believe me, you just won't be able to put it down. We've been reading all morning, and that's saying something 'cause normally I'm not a reader."

Connie smiled and nodded. "She's right Steph. Everyone's reading it. It's on the New York Times bestseller list. For months now! I can't believe you've not heard about it."

I looked at the book in my hands. It looked simple enough. Black cover, with a tie on the front. _Fifty Shades of Gray _it said. I leafed through the pages, but couldn't get the jist from the few paragraphs I read. "What's so great about it?"

Lula spoke up. "What's so great about it? What's so great about it? It's the shit! You see this guy, Christian, is rich you see. And this girl, Anastasia…well, Ana for short, goes to interview him. And she's all virgin like and he's a rich businessman. And well, she falls into his office. And they do the interview. And he eventually stalks her, but in a nice way, and finds her and convinces her to go out with him. But it turns out he's into the lifestyle-what do you call it Connie…?"

Connie licked more lemon filling off of a finger, and replied. "BDSM."

"Yea, that's it…BDSM lifestyle. And this crazy lady Eleana taught him all this stuff when he was fifteen. Fifteen! Can you believe that?"

I placed the book back on Connie's desk. "Hmmm. BDSM. Isn't that the kinky dangerous stuff? I'm surprised you're reading that Connie."

Lula huffed. "So you're not surprised _I'm_ reading it? Just because my former profession was a lady of the night don't mean I'm into kinky shit. Most people like it as vanilla as it comes. Besides, housewives all over the country are reading this. It's making waves across America. You're just upset 'cause you ain't in the know."

"Yea, well I know plenty. And I know that this whatever you call it…"

"BDSM"- this from Connie and Lula.

"Yes, well, BDSM. It's not for me. In fact, I'm pretty satisfied with what did you call it Lula? Vanilla? Nothing wrong with a little vanilla. Nothing at all."

Just then Ranger came out of Vinnie's office and picked the offending book off of Connie's desk. "So you ladies deciding on book club?"

Connie stammered. "Uh…yea…yea. That's it. Bookclub. We're having bookclub at Steph's apartment this week. Right Lula?"

"Yea. Right! Bookclub…"

"Babe, since when are you into soft porn?"

"Ranger, supposedly it's not soft porn. Lula says it's about kinky stuff…"

"Like what, Babe?"'

I leaned into him and whispered. "Stuff like, well…you know….beee-deee-ssss-emmmmm."

"What Babe?"

"Oh, nevermind!"

Ranger looked like he was thinking about smiling. He looked down at the book and tossed it to Lula. "Enjoy your reading ladies. Steph, can I see you outside?"

Ranger stepped out and I turned to Connie and Lula. Both were fanning themselves from the view of Ranger. He tended to do this to them most days. I guess they were having a delayed reaction from earlier.

As I walked out the door and towards Ranger's truck, he pulled me to him for a seriously hot kiss. "So Babe, you're into a monthly bookclub now?"

"Ummm, well. Not really. Actually they were just telling me about it. I haven't read it. Supposedly it's a best seller."

"Babe."

"Honest. I just bought donuts. I have no desire to read about kinky stuff."

"You sure about that Babe?"

"Why, Ranger? You got a copy of Fifty Shades in your truck? You been reading kinky stuff?"

"Babe, I haven't read it, but you'd have to have lived under a rock to not have heard about the series of books over the past few months. You mean to tell me you're just now hearing about it?"

"So sue me! I've been busy. I work, I capture FTA's. What spare time I have is usually spent with you…engaging in, as Lula would call it, _vanilla_ sex."

"Babe, I enjoy vanilla sex with you, but I told you once I was sexually sick. Remember?"

I gulped, not exactly comfortable with where this conversation was suddenly headed. "So what are you saying, Ranger? You want me to read Fifty Shades? Is that what you're saying?"

Ranger smiled. "No Babe. You don't need to read it unless you want to. But as far as BDSM, there's a lot to it that you might enjoy. It's very….liberating. Not all of it is whips and chains."

"So have you read books about _it_, Ranger?"

Ranger smiled and laughed. "Read 'em, Babe? No... I could _write_ them."


	2. Chapter 2

Wow! Thanks so much for all of the reviews you guys have left. I'm blown away! I really, honestly, truly was going to leave this one as a one shot- especially since I have 2 other stories that are works in progress. I don't want it to be said that I'm one of those authors with great ideas everywhere, but no follow through or completion (Yes, I promise to finish those stories! ) That said, since so many of you asked I am continuing with chapter 2. I do have to warn you, that the books listed below I totally made up. This is fanfiction after all, so take the writing with a grain of salt. I'm totally making this stuff up, and Lord knows I'm no expert on the subject. If we get further into this story, I guess it will mean a lot of research on my part! Oh Goody!

So without further ado, here's chapter 2. These are not my characters. Again, I'm just taking them out for a test drive. All creative liberties towards characters belongs to Ms. Janet E.

I found myself traveling on Lincoln road towards Hamilton and my thoughts were all a mess. Truth be told, I was a mess. I was hot. I was bothered. I was hot and bothered. Oh hell, who am I kidding? My verbal banter with Ranger had me wound up tighter than a two day clock. Why did he have to be so damn confusing? I mean, we have a great sex life, right? We meet up. We hook up. Both of us are satisfied, right? What if Ranger isn't satisfied? Is that what makes him hold back from me? Does he want someone who is more adventurous in the bedroom? Is that what he was alluding to? The better question is am I willing to be more adventurous? I'm not usually one to admit when I'm in over my head, but in this one area, I'm at a loss.

I realized that I had been sitting at a red light for far too long when the blaring of a horn caught my attention. I looked in the rear view mirror, waved my apologies, and motored through the intersection. My thoughts were still a jumbled mess as I passed Waverly's Bookstore on Main street. I thought about pulling into the parking spot in front of the store but decided against it. I mean, my life was basically an open book-no pun intended. As soon as I went in and bought a copy of _the book_, my mom would get a phone call from someone telling her that I was buying porn from the local bookstore. What would the Burg think? I realized that my internal diva was flipping me off and for once I decided to listen to her. I do mean, I'm an adult, right? And who says just because I read _the books _means I have to do anything kinky. I'm just expanding my literary horizons, right? Yea, that's the ticket.

I circled the block and told myself that if the parking spot was still open when I made it back to the store, then fate must want me to stop. I took my time turning the corner in my less than new Honda CR-V and once I rolled past Waverly's again, not only was the original spot open but a second spot had opened up as well. I rolled my eyes as my internal diva said 'I told you so'.

I made my way inside and perused through several sections. I picked up a couple of crossword and word find books, figuring I could use them to keep myself busy when I was on the occasional stake out with Rangeman or when I was stalking FTA's. Plus it gave me a cover reason for being here. I wandered through the store and found it pretty deserted, thank God, and eventually found the Fifty Shades series on an end cap near the bestsellers section. There were about 10 copies of each book left, so I guess what Connie and Lula said was true after all. If this book is as popular as they said, half of the Burg is probably sitting at home reading it- not that you'd get any of them to admit it. I picked out one of each book- quickly deciding to buy the whole set and save myself the embarrassment of having to come back if I liked them. I mean, I probably wouldn't like them. Probably, I'd have trouble making it through the first paragraph. But why leave things to chance, right?

On my way up to the counter, I passed another section devoted to books about sex. As I wrapped my mind around the fact that sex books were being sold a few miles from my mothers' home, it became apparent to me that my mother had obviously not been in this particular bookstore. I knew this because had she stepped foot in this store, I would have already heard how the entire Burg should boycott the store for selling 'inappropriate filth'. I blamed my mom's prim and proper attitude towards sex for my nievatity towards the subject. I'd often wondered just how Valerie and I came along, since she refused to talk about anything that remotely related to sex. "The Talk" that all kids have with their parents was never had with me, and as far as I know Valerie was never subjected to it either. What I knew about sex was learned at school, from Mary Lou, in Joe Morelli's garage, and through experience. And my experience was limited at best. Sure I was 30 years old and had been married, and had been intimate with Joe and Ranger. But 'The Dick' was more about his pleasure than mine. And he was too busy out banging everyone else to worry very much over whether he was hitting my g-spot or not. Joe was a great lover, but stuck to the average ways that he had always depended on that were tried and proven to make me fall apart in his arms. His stamina was impressive. His creativity was not. And then there was Ranger. I've already said that neither of us ever pushed for more than the other seemed willing to allow. And that felt safe. And comfortable. But the truth was, I found myself often wondering what he would do if I did push for more. Would I lose him? What was there to gain? Through in my overactive Hungarian/Italian libido, and I was a hot mess.

I felt sure that Ranger was far more experienced than I would ever be. I was also sure that Ranger had seen, and probably done, his fair share of "creative experimentation", and truthfully, I doubted my ability to impress him. But still, a little knowledge couldn't hurt things, right? I mean, no one had to know about my adventures into the sexual unknowns except me. And most thirty year olds should know more than I did sexually speaking, right? Right! I was just closing the gap between me and the rest of humanity. Call it leveling the playing field if you will.

I picked out a few more books- finding one that promised to show me at least 21 sexual positions to drive my man wild, another that promised hotter, better sex in three weeks, and an especially promising one titled _Your Guide to Kink: What you Wanted to Know but Were Afraid to Ask._ I leafed through the book and saw that it seemed relatively well written, was simple, and had photos. Oh my! Photos! What more could I ask for? I quickly shut the book, shuffled the order- putting the crosswords on top- and made my way to the checkout counter.

A pimply faced boy who looked to be all of seventeen was standing behind the counter with earbuds in his ears. I could hear the blaring music from where I stood across the counter, and it was obvious that customer service was not high on his list of priorities. All the better for me! Pimple Face rang up my purchases without a second glance, gave me my total, and never even make eye contact. My books were put in a paper bag with handles- thank you again God; no see through bags- and I made my way back to my car.

I motored on towards Rangeman and thought about my to-do list for the day. I knew that I had several searches to run at Rangeman. I'd have a quick lunch there and work til 5. I didn't have any pressing FTA's for the afternoon or evening, and Ranger hadn't mentioned wanting to get together this evening, so I could easily get some reading time in tonight. Which one would I start with? Hmmm…maybe I could even get some reading in on my lunch break. That is, if I could sneak in a few minutes away from the Merry Men.

After pulling into the underground garage and parking, I found the first book –_Fifty Shades of Grey_- and put it into my messenger bag to take into Rangeman with me. I put the remaining books in the backseat, tossed a jacket over them, and locked up my car. I made my way to the elevator and up to my cubicle to begin searches for the day.

The morning passed relatively quickly, and around noon I decided to take my lunch break. I swiped a sandwich from the break room, along with a bag of baked Doritos, and a bottle of water. I said hello's to all of the guys and made my way back to my desk to eat my lunch in peace. This wasn't unusual for me, since a lot of the guys were in and out all throughout the day. I'd occasionally eat in the break room, or up on seven if Ranger was around, but today seemed to be an especially quiet day in the office. Hopefully I'd get a little reading in and no one would be the wiser.

I set a search to run, figuring it would take a few minutes to complete, and settled in to eat. I opened up to page 1 and began to read. I blame what happened next on the fact that I was totally absorbed in the book. Probably it had nothing to do with the fact that I'd skipped around in the book, purposely trying to find the interesting sexual parts of the book, while dog earring the pages for later. And Probably it had nothing to do with the fact that after reading those, I backtracked and went back to read about NDA's, disclosure, subs, and contracts. Yea, it probably had nothing to do with that at all. What the heck is a sub? And an NDA? What in the world? At any rate, you can certainly blame it on whatever you will, but the fact remains that I was so totally absorbed in my reading material that I didn't realize that Ranger was behind me until it was too late. He'd obviously been there a while, as evidenced by the completed search that had finished printing that he was now holding.

"Earth to Babe."

I jumped, spilling my chips all over my desk and throwing the book down on my desk in a sure sign of guilt.

"Oh! Ummm…hi! Ranger! What's up?"

"Babe."

"Did you need something, Ranger? You almost gave me a heart attack. I didn't realize you were in this morning."

"Morning, Steph? It's 1:30, Babe. You've been staring at that book and nibbling on that same chip for almost an hour. I've passed by your desk three times and said hi to you twice. Must be pretty interesting reading material." This was said with a look that made Ranger look like he was thinking about laughing.

"You're just all chuckles aren't you big guy?" I said, jokingly swatting him on the ass. I have you know I was taking my lunch break. And you're interrupting. Besides, I've got to get back to work anyway. Was there something particular you needed, Boss?"

Ranger bent down so that he was level with me as I sat in my desk chair. He reached for the book, which had conveniently landed on my desk with my last read page dog eared, as he tucked a curl behind my ear. He turned the book towards him, skimmed the page for a few moments, smiled a devil smile, and then turned the book back over- print side down. He leaned in to give me a sweet, slow, delicious kiss. I wasn't sure whether I was turned on or scared to death. There seemed to be more to the kiss than I'd ever experienced previously with Ranger. There was heat there, in spades. But there was an undercurrent there as well. A promise of something dangerous and erotic as hell. Maybe it was the promise of something-more? What I wasn't sure. As he pulled away he nipped hard on my bottom lip, sending a sting of pain and pleasure through me to my core. I inhaled sharply- not from pain but from surprise.

Ranger pulled back from the kiss and looked long and hard at me. "Babe, do you have plans tonight?"

"Well, no. Not really. Why do you ask?"

"Would you like to have dinner with me? In my apartment? Say around 6? You can come on up after you finish here at work."

"Sure. Sounds great." I've never been one to turn down Ella's cooking. Plus dinner with Ranger often lead to sleeping with Ranger. And God knows this book had me all flustered.

"Sounds good Babe. I'll see you then."

Ranger turned to leave my cubicle and began to walk down the hallway. I quickly turned the book over to read the section that Ranger had read and found amusing. I groaned inwardly as I realized what page the book was turned to. Could he have found a more awkward chapter to have read? There, in black and white, I found the words I'd been reading.

"_When did you start your period, Anastasia?" he asks out of the blue, gazing down at me.  
"Er…yesterday," I mumble in my highly aroused state.  
"Good." He releases me and turns me around.  
"Hold on to the sink," he orders, and drags my hips back again, like he did in the playroom, so I'm bending down.  
He reaches between my legs and pulls on the blue string- what?!- and gently takes my tampon out and tosses it into the nearby toilet. Holy fuck. Sweet mother of all…Jeez. And then he's inside me…ah! Skin against skin…_

Jeez is right! Could I be any more embarrassed? I quickly tried to throw away the remains of my lunch and before I could stash the book back in my bag I heard Ranger clear his throat. As I looked up he spoke.

"Oh, and Babe…"

"Yea Ranger?"

"Bring the book with you tonight."

_Eeep!_

_(Quote above in italics is not mine. It is taken directly from Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One. Location 8919 of 107428 in Kindle edition. Rights belong to EL James.)_


	3. Chapter 3

Happy New Year everyone! Hopefully this new year will give me the boost I need to finish some stories. At any rate, I hope you all had a safe holiday season and that 2013 holds many blessings in store for you all. Now, on to chapter 3. These are not my characters. Again, I'm just taking them out for a test drive. All creative liberties towards characters belongs to Ms. Janet E. My special thanks go out to Elaine for her willingness to beta for me. Thanks girl!

I was just finishing up the last of my searches for the day. The clock on my computer read 5:55, and I had procrastinated just about as long as I could without risking Ranger coming to look for me. I had quickly tucked the book into my messenger bag after Ranger found me reading it, and had spent the past 4 plus hours buried in searches. I had a hard time keeping my mind on the searches that I had done, so I felt like the work went slower than usual. My thoughts kept going back to what I had read in the book, and the research I had done last night. I started to use my laptop, until I remembered that it was a Rangeman laptop. With my luck, everything that I Googled would be logged into my search history. So I used my phone to do a little additional research gathering. I quickly learned that there are all kinds of websites out there- both good and bad- that cover every imaginable thing under the sun. Got a foot fetish? There's a web page for it! Whips and chains excite you? There's thousands of pages…complete with images. My mind was swirling with all of the terms…so many that I had thought about starting a list on a steno pad just to keep it straight!

As my mind continued to whirl, I gathered up all of my printouts, quickly straightened my desk area, and then dropped the completed files into Rodriguez's box. All the remaining guys on duty called out various messages of goodbye as I headed to the elevator. I smiled and waved, praying that they couldn't read my thoughts.

On the short trip up to seven, my thoughts wandered to the comments Ranger had made about the taboo subject of BDSM. And I wondered too about my sudden interest in it. Why did a simple conversation in Vinnie's of all places, lead me to wanting to know…well, more? Why did I have a sudden interest in reading about _it_? Ranger claimed he didn't read books about _it_, but could easily write them. And if I were honest with myself, that kind of scared me. I mean, here I am, a simple Burg girl. And he's, well, he's …_Ranger_! Don't get me wrong, it's not like I have a complex of inferiority, but if I'm honest with myself, I know absolutely _nothing_ about kink yet for some reason, I yearn to know more. I'm almost eager for more. I mean, sure, I've read a few romance novels that I picked up while in college. But those were pretty tame in comparison to what the Fifty Shades books were about. Why does the simple thought of reading about it turn me on so much?

When I realized that the elevator had stopped and the doors were open, Ranger was standing in front of me giving me that half smile that he does so well. "Babe, you okay? You seem really deep in thought."

I quickly snapped out of my musings. Stephanie, get it together! Keep your mind and thoughts out of the gutter! I looked up and smiled. "Nope," I mustered, slightly popping the 'p', "I'm good. Just thinking." Ranger opened the door to his penthouse and allowed me to walk in before him. He quietly shut the door behind us as I sat my messenger bag down beside the door. The fragrant smells of dinner filled the penthouse and I took the opportunity to walk over to the kitchen to see what wonderful concoction Ella had whipped up for us.

"Chicken and wild rice, Babe. But she also left chocolate cake for you for dessert."

I smiled, thinking how odd it was that Ranger could read my unasked question. How is it that he always seems to know what I'm thinking? What I'm feeling? I tried to push those thoughts to the back recesses of my mind. "You actually let her leave saturated fats and carbs in your apartment? Surely you jest?"

"Actually, I _asked_ her to bring something for you. I told her that I was working on the art of compromising. Ella actually smiled and said 'About time!' I thought you'd appreciate the gesture." I looked at Ranger, expecting him to be joking, but only got his serious face in return. I took a deep breath and walked over to him, easily sliding my arms around his waist as he pulled me close and moved my hair from my shoulders. He held me tightly as I took another deep breath and inhaled his essence, his fragrance. Just being near him seemed to give me confidence and make the room spin. I pulled back slightly, so that I could look up to his eyes, and smiled.

"Ranger, I appreciate the effort at compromise. You know as well as anyone that I can't turn down chocolate. But for some reason I feel like there's more to it than that. Normally you would be the last person to supply the chocolate and the first person to complain about me eating it. Are you buttering me up for something?"

Ranger half way smiled and looked just past my shoulder, off into the distance, as if he were thinking about saying something. Or maybe he was thinking about how to say something. Maybe whatever his something was that he had to say was bad. Or maybe he thought I'd go all rabbit on him and run like the wind. All I know is that the silence was killing me and I was starting to really worry.

"Ranger…are you ok? I didn't mean to upset you. I was just kidding about the choc…."

Range put a finger gently over my lips. "Babe, what are we? I mean, what would you like us to be?"

Okay, hold the phone! I'm standing here in Ranger's apartment and he's asking me what are we? Hell if I know! He's the one that doesn't DO relationships. He's the one who wants a condom, not a ring, but a quickie in a closet will work too. I took yet another deep breath, dislodged my arms from his waist, and turned to walk to the window.

"Ranger, what do you mean 'What are we'? We're friends, we're sometimes lovers, we're …well, we're _us_. It's hard to describe. We're hard to describe."

"Babe, I'm going out on a limb here and I'm trying really hard to meet you half way. I'm trying my damndest to be honest with you for a change. I know I've fed you a lot of shit over the years, and for that I'm sorry. My lifestyle is in many ways unconventional, at best, and I never thought that you would be interested in me for more than we have right now. But you seem to be rather, well…let's call it inquisitive, as of late. Am I mistaken?"

My mind was going a million miles a minute. Inquisitive? What is he talking about? My mind raced back to the short conversations we had exchanged over the past few minutes. No luck there, the only thing I was inquisitive about was what was for diner. Ok, before that there was lunch…I had a turkey sandwich while I was reading the book… Oh God. Oh God! Oh God! The light bulb dinged in my head as Ranger came to stand beside me and took my hand. He had never really been one to beat around the bush with anything. So I suppose this attempt at conversation between us was him asking how much I wanted to know about kink. Oh God…Oh God! I could feel the heat coming from my face. I took a small step away from the window, scared that the heat from my cheeks would make condensation appear on the glass.

"I don't…I don't understand, Ranger. What are you getting at? It's a book. I wanted to see what all of the hype was about. I think you're jumping to conclusions. "

Ranger laughed, and pulled me close. "Am I Steph? Really? Can we just drop all pretenses for a little while and take tonight to be honest with each other? I feel like we've held back from each other long enough. If you're honest with yourself, you'll admit that you have thought of nothing but those books since I left you yesterday, correct?"

I turned, unable or maybe unwilling to meet his eyes. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of being right, yet in some way I was drawn to him. I was unable to tell him a lie, so I instead remained silent. He walked up to me, and gently touched my shoulders, and spoke softly, gently.

"And if you're even more honest with me, and yourself, you'll admit that you probably did some research online last night, or better yet I bet you went by a bookstore today, to read up on BDSM. Maybe you read a few articles, but knowing you like I do you were probably scared that Rangeman would be able to see your search history since I'm pretty sure you're still using a Rangeman laptop at home. Correct?"

Again, I remained silent. "And since I'm pretty sure you didn't use your laptop to do research, I'm willing to bet that in addition to the book in your messenger bag over there, that there is at least the other 2 parts of the trilogy and a few more sex books down in your car in the garage, right?"

My eyes jumped to meet his. "You little sneak! How did you…did you follow me?"

Ranger laughed softly, and smiled one of the biggest smiles I'd seen in a while. He bent down to kiss me, soft at first, but then harder, nipping at my lip, making it sting just the tiniest bit. "Just as I thought. Babe, you're easy to read. And no I didn't follow you, nor did I track your purchases. I simply am able to read human body language better than most. It's what makes me good at what I do, and it's served me well while when I was in the Army. And I can read you better than anyone else."

"Was? What do you mean was in the Army?" I inquired. I mean, I wasn't real sure of what Ranger did when he went in the wind. I never really asked, since I figured it was top secret. But he had made no mention of not being in the Army anymore. It was something that I worried about continually when he was 'in the wind'. I worried about where he was, when would he return, and what was he doing while he was gone. Was he rescuing people from famine? Stopping illegal drug trading? Putting an end to sex slaves? Or maybe he was just going out of country to meet up with someone else. Did I have a right to know?

"Babe, I can hear the wheels turning in your mind from over here. Come on, let's sit down on the couch and you can tell me what's going on in that head of yours. But first, yes, I spoke correctly. I was in the Army. As of about three months ago I am no longer at the service of Uncle Sam. My contract has ended and I decided not to re-sign. Rangeman is growing and needs more and more of my attention. Tank is able to run things while I am gone, but if I continue to open branches at other areas, then I am going to need to redistribute the core teams for training at other locations."

I followed him to the sofa and let out a breath that I didn't realize I was holding. "I don't understand, Ranger. Does this mean…does it mean no more 'in the wind'? No more leaving? That's a good thing, right? I mean, it's what you want?"

Ranger rubbed his hands up and down my arms gently. "Yes, Babe, it's a good thing. It's time for me to stop. I'm not as young as I once was, and the thrill doesn't do anything for me like it used to. I can still be called in for consults on an as needed basis. But Rangeman is where my heart is. Rangeman and Trenton. Now that that issue is cleared up, let's get back to our earlier conversation. Maybe I should start over, since I don't think I'm doing such a great job at discussing this. I have a gift for you."

Ranger smiled at me, told me to stay where I was, and then stood to go to his bedroom. A gift? For me? I'm about as confused as a termite in a yo-yo! How did we go from talking about Fifty Shades of Gray, to BDSM research, then to talk about Ranger leaving the Army? And what is up with talkative Ranger? I'm beginning to think he has more shades to him than Christian Gray!

Ranger walked back into the room with two wrapped boxes. Each one was wrapped in black paper with silver bows. He handed each to me with a smile. "Open them."

To say I was surprised would be an understatement. "Ranger, I don't mean to keep repeating myself. But I don't understand. Why the gifts? And it seems that our conversation is all over the place tonight."

"Part of that is my fault Steph. Please, just open the gifts and I'll explain as you do."

I began to unwrap them, and noticed that the first was a new laptop. "This, Steph, is a laptop just for you. It's not for work, and it's not tied to Rangeman in any way. The internet subscription is on my account, and there's no tracing what you look up on it. It's for your use completely. There is something I have always wondered about you, but now, after the past couple of days, I feel a little more comfortable in talking to you about it. The laptop is yours. You can look up anything you'd like."

"Gee, Ranger, I don't know what to say. It's too much, way too much."

"No, it's not Steph. I care for you a great deal."

"But why, Ranger? I mean, why the laptop? And what's the thing you're wondering about."

"Let's hold that thought for just now. Open the next gift."

I shook my head slightly, still confused at the gesture as I unwrapped the next gift. It was a Kindle Fire. "Ranger, this is all too much. A Kindle and a laptop? I still don't understand."

Ranger took the gifts and set the laptop aside, and pulled the Kindle out of the box. He turned the eReader on, as he pulled me to his side. "Let me explain Steph. I want you to be able to explore anything you'd like to learn about. Knowledge is the key to power and self discovery. I've traveled the world, and seen a lot of things. Some good, some bad. Those experiences make me who I am and have molded me into the person that I am today. When your experiences are limited, you have a more limited view, there's less chance for knowledge, less opportunities for self discovery. People compensate by burying themselves in their work, or simply get busy living life."

"So you want me to become a book and tech nerd?"

Ranger laughed. "No, not at all Steph. I've noticed how you light up when I make references of a sexual nature."

"Ha! Have you looked at yourself? Geez Ranger! Half of the Eastern seaboard would light up if you smiled at them."

"Stephanie, let's be serious. Do you honestly want to tell me that you don't want to know more about sex? About BDSM? About kink? If I'm wrong, I'll admit it, and you can keep the gifts. I'll wipe the Kindle, and you're free to download Hamsters for Dummies if you'd like, or whatever else lights your fire."

"What do you mean wipe the Kindle? What's on it?" I wondered aloud.

Ranger grinned. "Babe, I took the liberty of preloading some interesting reading for you. Some books that are filled with factual information. There's been several good books published on the subject. A lot of what you will find on the internet is, well, trash. There's good information out there too, but many times you spend a lot of time looking through the filth to find truth."

"So what's this reading material about? Ranger I was married, so I'm not a virgin. I know how to have sex. We've had sex. Surely I'm not that bad at it."

Ranger interrupted. "No, Babe. I don't mean that at all. I simply want you to be able to research for yourself. You are a wonderful partner in bed. But I feel like you are holding back with me. And I know that you've realized I hold back with you. I don't want to push you beyond what you are comfortable with. But I think if you're honest with yourself you want more. I simply felt that in light of our recent conversations, this would be a good time to broach the topic that I'd wanted to talk to you about for a while now."

I took a minute to absorb what Ranger had said. It's true. Everything he had said was true. I was curious about many things. And I did feel like I should know more than I did. But still, I felt lured by the darker topics I'd read about last night.

"What exactly is this that you want to talk to me about Ranger? Besides sex. I mean, what is it that you have wanted to ask me about all along?"

Ranger took a deep breath, looked me in the eye, and gently took my hand. "Steph, I simply wanted to ask you what I've seen in you all along."

"Oh really? And what is that, Ranger?"

"You spend your days being the sassy Trenton Bounty Hunter. But deep down you know that you really want to give control to someone. You're tired of spending all of your time portraying the persona that you want everyone to see. You want someone to have your best interests at heart, and you want time when you can relax and just be you. Just Stephanie. With someone else having the responsibility of making sure your needs are met without giving up what makes you you. What I'm trying to say, Steph, is I think you would really enjoy trying out some other things…sexual things. The world doesn't have to always be vanilla. There's a lot to be said for other flavors. Let's say you only eat chocolate donuts. If you never tried a Boston crème, how do you know what you're missing?

I looked at him seriously. Now he was speaking my language. Donuts I could relate to!

"Steph, I think you'd enjoy being submissive in the bedroom. And if I'm right, and you do enjoy it, we could extend our activities, maybe even extend our relationship. What do you think, Steph? You interested?"

O_h boy!_


End file.
